Survey of English Place-Names

Historical Forms

• Sponbedde 1327 SR

• Sponebed 1400 Rudder 1540 LP 1585 GR445 1592 FF

• Spoonebedd 1636 ib

• the great hill Sponebed 1779 Rudder

Etymology

Spoonbed, Spoonbed Hill, Sponbedde 1327SR (p), Sponebed 1400 Rudder 594, 1540 LP, 1585GR 445, 1592 FF, Spoonebedd 1636 ib, the great hill Sponebed 1779 Rudder 592. v. spōn , bedd ; OE  spōn was used in the sense 'chip, shaving' and in ME it also came to be used (like ON  spánn ) of a roofing shingle. In p.ns. like Spoonbed or Spoonley (ii, 27infra ) it no doubt refers to the chips or shavings made in the felling and preparation of timber, and Spoonbed itself would denote 'a bed or pile of such chippings'. Since OE  bedd is used in p.ns. chiefly to denote 'a bed of growing plants', spoon in this p.n. is possibly figurative with some meaning which we cannot determine.